Time and Place
by dreemseeker
Summary: Ranger helps out when Woody gets caught up in some unexpected intrigue. My AU.


Standard FF disclaimer.

March 23, 2012

Thanks again to my friend Rei Chan.

I'm back in my AU.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

"He says he's on the move," Tank said, hitting a button and ending the phone call.

"We can catch up with Javier Contreras in DC. The informant says he will be at the club right before the lunch hour rush, late tomorrow morning."

Ranger nodded. "Put your team together. Let's bring this guy in."

Woody was glad to be called in on the team. He was getting tired of the paper work and the monitor duty. It seemed like that was all he was assigned to do lately. A chance to get out of the building was always welcome. They were after a high bond FTA, and it promised to be interesting. This Contreras guy had been in the system before, so Woody knew he wouldn't go down without some kind of a fight.

When it was time to go, the team met down in the garage. Woody and Manny pulled out of the garage first, Tank and Bobby right behind them. There was about a three hour drive ahead of them. So they started out, each man finding his zone for the drive.

The informant seemed to know exactly what he was talking about. With in fifteen minutes of arriving outside of the club, they all spotted the skip. Contreras was wanted for armed robbery, this time. But his rap sheet was a mile long. Woody shook his head. He was wondering how this guy keeps getting out on bail. Bail that he then skips on, he thought. This was one of the lowest forms of humanity that there was.

But the guy wasn't exactly brain dead, he had been at this bad guy stuff long enough to be able to recognize a setup when he saw one. He remembered Tank when he saw him get out of the truck. It is hard to forget a big man like Tank, and he knew what it meant if Tank was here. So he bolted. Contreras knew that he was in trouble. The chase was on. Tank and Bobby pursued him directly. Woody and Manny ran around the other side of the club, hoping to cut him off.

Contreras was a small man. He was thin, rather bony. Perhaps he thought he could out run the bigger men who were after him. Problem was he wasn't particularly fast or coordinated. As he turned the corner of the building, he nearly ran into Manny. He spun around and fumbled in his deep pants pocket. Finally he pulled out a gun, like he thought that he could shoot his way out of the spot he was in. He started shouting, first at Manny and then at Woody. Waving his hands wildly in the air.

Most of what he was shouting was in Spanish. His speech was a bit slurred, and very sloppy. Woody could understand a lot of the TexMex version of Spanish. Living in Texas, you practically learn Spanish by osmosis. It becomes your second language. But Woody couldn't even begin to tell what was being said by this guy.

On the other hand, Manny spoke Spanish as his first language, and he had had many experiences in his life where loud, drunk men yelled at him, at his sisters. He understood all too well what was being yelled at him now.

Manny shot a look to Woody. "So this guy thinks he's a bad ass," he said. A look came over his Manny's face. Manny was just the guy to bring him down a notch or two.

"!Oye! Manny yelled at the guy. "Oye, pendejo…" Manny shouted, adding some more very colorful language while he was at it.

It worked, Contreras glared at Manny. And Manny kept his attention long enough for Woody to move in and grab him by one of his flailing arms. Woody quickly pulled his arm up behind his back. There was a struggle for the gun. Contreras thought he still had a few moves to use. He dropped the gun and tried to hack at Woody's arm with a chopping motion. Woody thought that the guy really must be high. He couldn't be stupid enough to try amateur karate moves on him.

But when Contreras screamed "HiiiiYaaah" while slicing his free hand through the air, and kicking one foot out to the side. They all knew that he was out of his mind, drugged up on something.

"Javier here thinks that he's invincible," Tank said.

"Best we teach him some manners," Bobby replied.

The take down was swift and they had Contreras secure in seconds. Tank hauled him into the back of his truck, and the idiot actually attempted to spit at him. Of course all that got him was an "accidental" punch in the face. Once he was secured in the truck with ankle chains and the handcuffs, the guys were ready to finish up and head back home.

Woody picked up the gun, dropping it into an evidence bag. He handed the bag to Bobby, and turned to Manny. "Well, that was entertaining," he said.

"Always a good time," Manny said, fist bumping Woody as they headed to their truck.

Tank needed to talk to the owner of the club, so Bobby stayed at the truck with the Contreras. The guy was still bleeding a bit from his nose and the corner of his mouth. Bobby was cleaning him up.

Woody and Manny drove off, back toward Trenton. Traffic seemed to be extra heavy, even for the lunch hour. Woody maneuvered the truck through the crowds and ended up stopped at a red light. He pulled up next a small blue car. He and Manny couldn't help but notice it because it was nearly bouncing off of the pavement. The music was cranked up and they could feel the sound waves emanating from it.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

_Wake me up inside, Wake me up inside_

_Call my name and Save me from the dark _

_Bid my blood to run, Before I've come undone_

_Save me from the nothing I've become_

_Bring me to life._

Cassie was belting out the song on the radio. She was a firm believer that you need to play your music loud enough so that you can't hear yourself singing along. Of course that meant that her little Honda accord was vibrating wildly to the bass in her speakers. It also meant that most of the nearby cars must be able to hear Evanescence loud and clear. Because Cassie liked to sing _loud_. She may have been shy in many social situations. But she believed that singing alone in her car was a God given right. And she took it very seriously.

_Frozen inside, without your touch,_

_without your love darling. _

_Only you_

_Are the life among the dead._

She was really into it now. She was stopped at a red light and gave herself up to the passion. Throwing her head back and closing her eyes, she sang. Really experiencing the emotion of the music.

In the car beside her, Cassie had an audience. Woody was completely mesmerized by this scene. He and Manny kept watching the car shaking violently. They exchanged looks, the car appeared to have been through a war zone. They both sat there hoping that the little car wouldn't fall apart from the strain.

But it was the woman inside the car that held Woody's interest. She was apparently lost in the moment. Singing at the top of her lungs. Of course her voice was not heard between the closed windows, and the volume of the music. But she seemed to be emotionally involved with the song. He watched partly because it was fascinating,

And, partly because…oh yeah,

She was hot!

"I've never seen anything like this before," Woody said. Manny just nodded. There were no words, English or Spanish, to describe what they were seeing.

He kept one eye on the light and the other on her. Woody knew that this performance had the potential to be incredibly distracting. But in this case distracting looked really good. And he realized that he although he was dangerously close to being 'unaware of his surroundings,' he was sure it was worth it.

Out of the corner of his eye, he barely caught a movement. He saw the speeding car just a split second before it plowed into the back of her car. Right next to them. Damn he thought, the car never even tried to slow down. Who goes slamming into cars like that.

Her eyes flew open, and she screamed. Cassie spun her head and just caught a glimpse of the man in the car next to hers. Then her car was hurtled into the middle of the intersection. It was crushed between the truck that was making a left turn, and the car that hit her. In seconds the three cars were a pile of crunched metal and broken glass. Woody jumped out of his truck and pulled out his phone.

"911" he told Manny as he speed dialed Bobby, and ran towards her car.

"Hey man, an accident just happened, right in front us" Woody yelled into his phone.

"Where are you guys?" Bobby asked.

"Corner of State and Main" Woody told him. "There is a woman in one of the cars, looks like she is unconscious, what should I do?' Woody asked, "how do I know if she is badly hurt and needs immediate help?"

Woody was up to the cars now. He was staring at the woman. It was hard to believe that just seconds before, she had been full of unrestrained passion. She was now slumped against the door. And her head was leaning up against the window. A deep cut on her forehead was pouring blood down her face. A slightly curved red mark, probably from the steering wheel, was forming on her cheek.

The crash had killed her radio. The silence it left was now filled with the usual accident noises. A whump, whump, whump of a spinning tire. The creaking of unstable metal against metal. The hissing and spurting of steam from the busted radiators. They could now hear the distant sound of sirens from the approaching ambulances. It looked bad, Woody thought, real bad.

"Tell me what you see" Bobby said. "And don't try to move anyone" he added.

Woody calmly reported the information to Bobby, "she is cut. But I can see that she is breathing. Definitely unconscious. And she is jammed up against the door."

"Best thing you can do is wait" Bobby told him "I'm on my way."

Woody felt a little bit helpless just standing there, but he knew he'd feel worse if he left her. So he pulled out his phone again and called Cal at RangeMan.

"Cal, I need you to look up a license plate for me." He read off the info from the Colorado plate on her car.

"Hold on a sec" Cal said. After a moment of silence he said, "Here it is," and he read the information on his screen.

"Phillips, Cassandra. 1234 Norfolk Circle, Gunnison, Colorado." Cal paused,

"what's this all about?" he asked.

"Saw an accident," Woody replied.

"Do you know her?" asked Cal.

"Not yet" Woody said and then disconnected when he saw Bobby coming toward him.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Cassie Phillips had been a student for almost a couple of months at Western State College in Gunnison, Colorado. She had ended up at Western unexpectedly. She came to Gunnison with a friend that she met during her time with the Peace Corps. And while she was here, she thought it would be a good idea to keep working on her degree.

Her friend, Beatrice Hansen, went by the name _B. _Not Beatrice, not Bea, but _B._

She was quite particular about that, and Cassie had never actually dared to ask her why. _B _was fairly tall, probably about 5'8". She had a stocky, female wrestler type shape.

She probably could have been a wrestler at some point, but she never spoke of her past. Cassie never pried.

By nature _B_ was strong and aggressive. She was street smart, and had a look that could stop you in your tracks. She made the perfect body guard for Cassie. Which is what she chose to be the first moment they met each other. They were complete opposites. Cassie was slender and blonde and had an innocence that truly exceeded naivete.

She was the kind of girl that _B _usually dismissed. Like all of the cheerleader types that had always looked at her with disgust. But she realized quickly that Cassie was different. Cassie had a big heart. She saw good in everyone she met. And she had a sincere desire to help anyone who needed her. One couldn't help but be drawn to her. And it was easy to see why the Peace Corps seemed to be perfect for her.

They met at the orientation in Washington DC. Cassie nearly tripped over the big combat boots that _B_ was wearing as she stuck her long legs out into the aisle. Cassie had noticed the vacant seat right next to_ B_ and that was where she was headed. She practically fell into the seat and turned to _B_ asking if the seat was taken. At that moment _B_ knew it was a good thing that she met Cassie on their way down to their country. She seriously doubted that this kind, but clueless girl could have made it on her own in Ecuador.

_B_ had told her, during that first meeting, that the Peace Corps had appealed to herfor the promise of adventure. She seemed so strong and sure of herself, so Cassie let _B_ look out for her, be her protector. And since Cassie spoke more Spanish than _B_ did, they made a good team. Due to a unique set of circumstances, however, their two year mission was abruptly cut short after only 10 months. And with their sudden departure, it seemed like a good idea for Cassie to follow _B_ home to Colorado. That's when she enrolled in the small college.

_B_ lived in her family home, it was actually all she had left of her family. And it was the only tie she had to Gunnison anymore. She was on her own, so she had plenty of room for a roommate. She felt that she had always been alone. And she told Cassie that she would welcome the company.

Her mother died when _B_ was only twelve. Her father disappeared four years later. And when she was 18, her older brother felt that he was off the hook and he left too. She looked like she had had a hard life and Cassie felt sorry for her.

Cassie could relate to being alone. Her own parents died in an accident just over 2 years before. She and her brother Alex were devastated. Alex dealt with his grief by joining the Navy, he left just two months after the funeral. Leaving Cassie to pick up the pieces of her broken heart, and try to move on with her life - alone. Her solution was to join the Peace Corps. In this frame of mind Cassie met _B_ and they became fast friends. It was inevitable, they had each needed a friend so desperately. And during their time in Ecuador, it was a great friendship.

But when they arrived in Colorado, there was something different. Cassie felt it, but she couldn't put her finger on it. _B_ did seem to act differently towards her. A bit more controlling, and maybe more moody, definitely more stressed. But that was only some of what felt off. Something was not right. And it was beginning to unnerve her.

Cassie wished that she could talk with her brother, but Alex always seemed to be out of reach. He had signed up for some additional training. She was told, by the Navy, to wait until he contacted her. It had been nearly 18 months since she had spoken with him. Cassie had received the occasional letter from him. But that was just not the same. And she missed him. She needed him.

Then one day everything changed. _B _decided to share her true feelings for Cassie. Next thing that Cassie knew, _B_ had wrestled her down onto the couch and tried to kiss her. Cassie froze at first. She was shocked and more than a little bit scared. She struggled to get away, and once she did, she ran. She ran away from the house, and away from _B, _unsure how to deal with this sudden revelation. She didn'treturn _B's _affections. They had never been friends that way. She knew that everything was different now, she couldn't stay.

Cassie started to examine each moment of the past year. Wondering if there was ever a word said, or an action that she had done that could have sent mixed signals. Had she ever given _B _any reason at all to believe that she would be interested in that kind of relationship with her? She had just thought that they were good friends and it pained her to lose their friendship this way. But she didn't see how she could stay. So she packed up and left. She dropped out of school, quit her job and drove as far away as she could get.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

The ambulance arrived at about the same time that Bobby came on the scene. Woody was anxious, he had been watching this woman when her car was hit. She met his eyes, and for that split second he saw the look of terror in her eyes. Somehow he felt responsible for her, connected to her. He watched as the emergency crews cut part of the car away so that the EMT's could reach her. And he stayed as close to her as he could. Bobby assured him that they were doing everything that they could to get her the help she needed, but Woody refused to leave.

Her eyes fluttered open when they gently lifted her onto the stretcher. And she looked into Woody's eyes. "Alex, you're here!" she said, grabbing his hand in one of hers. "You're here," she repeated. "Grab dad's pack," she told him. She looked like she was going to pass out again. But suddenly her grip on his hand tightened. "Alex, don't leave me," she pleaded, her eyes bore into his. "Don't leave me again." Her voice faded and her eyes closed. She lost her firm grip and his hand slipped from hers, his arm falling limp at his side.

Woody was stunned. No one had called him Alex in years. He had been known as Woody since before basic training. Alexander Woodrow was just the legal name on his contracts and checks. But she had looked into his eyes and spoken his name. And it left him badly shaken. Not that he would ever show it.

Bobby had gone back to the truck and was speaking with Manny and Tank. There was nothing he could do here. The EMT's had everything under control. And most of the victims were already on their way to the hospital.

This was an unusual situation. It wasn't standard procedure to interrupt the delivery of a skip for any reason. But the accident had taken precedence this time. And here they were. The skip was, at that moment, handcuffed and sitting uncomfortably in the back of Bobby's truck, with Tank glaring at him. Enough time had passed, and they were all anxious to bring Contreras in and be done with it. Once the last ambulance had left, Bobby turned to leave,

"Let's get back to Trenton" he told Woody.

But Woody wasn't ready to go home yet. He still had to know what would happen to the woman. It didn't feel right to leave her alone. Tomorrow was his day off. So Woody suggested that Manny go back with Bobby and Tank. He would stay another day here. Reluctantly they agreed and they left. Woody gave his statement to the police officer and turned around to walk over to his truck. Another officer rushed over to him just as he had opened the door.

"I was told to give this to you," he said handing over a large, leather back pack. "It was in her car." He nodded once at Woody and left.

Woody tossed the back pack into his truck and headed for the Hospital.

Ranger may have had more experience with intimidating the staff at hospitals, but Woody did a pretty damn good job at finagling his way into her room. He had pulled the 'family card' telling a pretty nurse that he was Cassie's brother. And why shouldn't she believe him, they both had blond hair and he was so sincere and concerned. And then he held up the back pack, Woody told her that his 'sister' never went anywhere without it. He wanted to make sure that she saw it when she woke up.

It may have been Woody's big brown eyes that clinched the deal. All he had to do was look into the nurse's eyes with his sad expression and she was a sucker for his story.

By the time he had arrived at her room, Cassie's leg had been set and she had a cast on her right leg, extending from her ankle to her thigh. She wouldn't have much mobility for the next 6 weeks Woody was told, by the nurse who came in to check on Cassie. The nurse came in every hour on the hour, like clockwork. Cassie's facial cuts had been bandaged. The welt on her cheek was a deep red now. He could already see hints of the bruising to come. She looked so fragile and broken. Woody sat by her bed, staring at her for the next 10 hours.

Why had she called his name, he wondered over and over again. It was this question that had kept him here by her side. That and the look in her eyes, when she realized she had been hit. He couldn't get that look out of his mind. He wanted to protect her and keep her safe from now on.

Suddenly he was startled out of his sleep. He hadn't actually been aware that he had dozed off. But she had stirred. He could feel the slight movement because he had accidentally fallen asleep with his head on the bed. But he was sure that he hadn't slept long, because the nurse wasn't back yet to check on Cassie.

Woody looked up into her crystal blue eyes. "Alex" she whispered, her voice rough and gravelly. The smile on her face faded as recognition slowly took place. Cassie prided herself on never forgetting a face. Her family had always teased her that she could forget her own name, but she would always remember a face. The realization came, finally, that Woody was the man she had seen in the car next to hers. Just before the accident. She shook her head and closed her eyes.

"I'm sorry," she said softly. "You're not Alex" her voice cracked as she spoke. Keeping her eyes shut, she asked "Is he here?" But she already knew the answer and tears started leaking out of her still closed eyes.

Woody was confused.

Yes, he_ was_ Alex.

And yes, he was _here_.

He placed his hand over hers and waited for her to gain control over her tears.

He waited a long time.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

A month and a half ago Cassie had arrived in Washington DC. Running from the mess with her friend, she decided to start over.

Again.

Seemed like her life was full of new beginnings, after tragic endings.

It wasn't anything that she liked to dwell on. But there were times when she couldn't help but think of the people in her life who had left her. She had a 29 hour drive across the country ahead of her. And she had time to think. Lots of time to think.

The thoughts and images came flooding in. First Cassie thought about Greg. He was her first big love. He was also her first big loss. For two years they had dated during college. Every spare moment was spent together. She lost track of so many of her friends. Because she chose being with Greg over spending time with them. She thought she could never love anyone as much as she loved him. Now just to hear the name 'Greg' made her stomach turn.

He graduated. That was the simple answer for the demise of their relationship. He was two years ahead of Cassie. Apparently he couldn't see himself being with a college student now that he was out in the big corporate world. He told her that she would hold him back. So he left. Of course there was more to it but, in a nut shell, he moved on.

Four years later she lost her parents to a plane crash. They were in a small 2 prop plane, taking a romantic 'aerial view of the city lights at night' trip. It was their anniversary. It was supposed to have been a really special night. Instead it was their last. Cassie truly missed her parents. But that loss was nothing compared to the feeling of losing Alex.

Alex was all she had left and it was tearing her apart to have her brother so far removed from her. She understood that he needed to find his own way to deal with their parents tragic death. She just wished it didn't have to include leaving her behind.

Throw in the strange situation in Ecuador, and this latest incident with _B_ and it was painfully clear. There had been more than enough loss in her life. She looked out over the boring views from the highway. Where was she anyway, she wondered. Illinois, Indiana, Ohio? This had been a long trip and it had turned into a pity party. She shook the thoughts from her head. And by the time she reached West Virginia, Cassie decided that she'd had enough of all that negativity. She was ready to move forward with her life.

After all, that's what this move was about. New chances. New attitude!

Cassie had kept the business card for the director of the Peace Corps and had contacted him searching for a job. To her surprise he had rapidly answered her inquiry. There was an immediate opening in the administrative offices in DC. He told her it was hers if she wanted it. She was surprised. But she was so relieved to have that much taken care of, that she didn't question how convenient it was.

And that was why she was in DC now.

New job, new scenery, and of course, new chances.

Too bad she couldn't shake the feeling that there was still something not quite right. And that uncomfortable idea in the back of her mind that she was being watched.

Cassie drove straight to the office. She was to check in with Human Resources to get her new employee paperwork finished. Jane, the HR secretary was really nice. After helping Cassie with the process, she asked if she had had a chance to find a place to live. Since Cassie had not even had a chance to think about it yet, Jane handed her an address written on a sticky note.

"A friend of mine just moved, her apartment was not too far from here, you might want to check it out," she said with a warm smile

Cassie gratefully accepted the paper. "Thank you, I think I will," she said. After gathering up her name tag, time card, and her benefits package booklet, she said good bye to Jane and headed over to the address given to her.

She climbed the steps to the studio apartment, following the friendly gentleman from the bakery below. When she first walked in the room she knew it would be perfect. It was in an old brick building. The once red bricks had aged with time and dirt to a warm rusty brown. And the whole place felt welcoming. And, as Jane had said, it was not too far from the Peace Corps offices.

The apartment was above a family run bakery. The layout was all one big open space with a bathroom tucked into one corner and a galley kitchen along the back wall. Floor to ceiling windows along one entire wall let in a warm glow from the street lights at night, and allowed the room to be bathed in natural light during the day. Fortunately the apartment came furnished, so Cassie was ready to move right in. She took a deep breath, the aroma from the bakery was so homey, so warm. She thought that she really would like it here.

Her office was just a few blocks away from the apartment and Cassie usually walked the distance every day, but today she had some errands she needed to run during her lunch hour so she drove her car in to work. And when she left at noon, she cranked up her music and headed out of the parking lot. She had two stops to make and just an hour to do it in.

Her car was old, so it only had a tape deck, no CD player. She didn't even own any cassette tapes. So Cassie considered herself incredibly lucky when one of her favorite Evanescence songs came on the radio. The volume was nearly as loud as she could get it and she sang her heart out.

Stopped at a red light, she tapped her hands on the steering wheel in time to the drums and closed her eyes, really allowing the emotions of the song to flow through her. She was completely oblivious to the car approaching her. It was barreling down the road, coming up directly up behind her, not slowing at all.

The fact that she was so relaxed at the time of impact , probably saved her from more

serious injuries. But it couldn't save her face from being slammed forward into the steering wheel, split seconds before the airbag deployed. It also couldn't change the angle that her leg hit the steering column. She only remembers screaming before everything went black.

And then she saw Alex. He had come at last. She needed him and he was here. The thought soothed her mind and she knew she would be alright. The darkness returned, but she was okay, Alex was here now, she would be okay.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Colorado was the last place that _B_ wanted to be. But she felt she was stuck here, at least until she could sell the house. It was all she had, all that was left of her broken family. But now, every day she was faced with her pathetic life and the horrors of her mistake with Cassie.

She had loved her so much. She meant to show Cassie how perfect they could be together. To remind her of how good a team they had always made. But no, she allowed emotions to override her restraint and she had practically attacked her. She regretted that moment over and over again. She had lost everything that she had ever dreamed of, in that one single, uncontrolled moment. She didn't blame Cassie for her reaction. She had scared her, of course she ran, it was the natural thing to do.

_B_ had just entered the house after another long day. She was hit again by the emptiness of both the house and her heart. Suddenly she heard a noise outside the window. Then another at the door. Confused, her senses were on alert and she grabbed the nearest weapon she could find. Pitiful, she chided herself when she realized that she had grabbed an umbrella. She threw it down. She heard the front door crashing in. And she ran to the bedroom. Her gun was under her bed. She could do damage with that, so she dove to retrieve it. That was when she felt the first bullet hit her back. She turned and fired, hitting the big dark blur that she could see coming at her. She fired again, screaming. She felt one more bullet as it hit her chest. That was the last thing she felt.

Neighbors in the small community called 911. Police cars pulled up to _B'_s house minutes after the first shots were heard. The dispatch had responded to 'gunshots fired', and sent out the nearest patrol cars. But by the time they arrived, the assailants were gone.

If the emergency calls had reported someone getting shot, dispatch would have sent the ambulance first. But by the time the police found _B_ in the back bedroom, it was too late. They called for the ambulance, but she was gone before it arrived.

_B _remembered hearing that your life would pass before your eyes as you died. That was the thought that came to her mind when she was shot. It wasn't true, she discovered. Her final thought was regret, Cassie was gone, it was her fault for scaring her away. And now Cassie would never know how sorry she was for destroying their friendship.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Glittering rays of sunshine streamed through the windows of her hospital room. Bouncing happily off of the shiny metal framework of the bed, they almost seemed to be mocking her. Cassie was trapped inside, and she could not go out and enjoy the beautiful weather.

She couldn't wait for Woody to come. His visits were the only things keeping her sane. She really looked forward seeing him. Cassie had never met anyone like him. The first thing anyone would notice about him was how big he was. He must have been well over six feet tall, and he was huge. Broad shoulders and chest with muscles that were big and well defined. You couldn't help but notice him walking by.

But Cassie noticed his eyes. They were caramel brown, and expressive. She could tell what he was thinking just by looking into those eyes. They were kind and warm when he looked at her. She had gotten lost in those eyes more than once already.

Some muffled noises could be heard in the hallway and Cassie was pretty sure that it meant that Woody was coming toward her room. He seemed to cause quite a commotion just by walking down the hall. So she sat up a little bit straighter in the bed and hoped that her hair looked okay. Seconds later the door opened. She was right, Woody was here.

"So," Cassie smiled at Woody as he walked in. "Did you hear about the 2 guys that stole a calendar?"

Woody looked at her sideways, "what? what guys" he asked.

"The ones who stole the calendar. Yeah, they each got 6 months."

Woody rolled his eyes at her. Here we go again he thought. This hospital stay had been making Cassie crazy. He had visited her just as often as he could get away from work, during the past 6 days. But she was bored beyond tears and she bombarded him with stupid jokes every time he came through the door.

"I thought of a really great Knock Knock joke," she told him.

"Okay let me have it," Woody responded, always willing to lighten her mood.

She nodded and said "Its great, you start ..."

"Knock, knock." Woody said.

"Who's there?" she answered.

He looked at her, waiting for the rest of the joke. And she busted up laughing. Another eye roll when he realized that she got him again with her stupid jokes.

"So, when do you get out of here?" he asked. He had walked over to the chair by her bed and had taken her hand in his as he spoke.

"Sounds like the day after tomorrow will be the big day." she said. Cassie shifted her shoulders a bit and tilted her head.

"Uh, Woody," she started, unconsciously drawing circles on his palm with her finger.

"Is there any way you could help get me home?" she asked.

Cassie had quickly come to like Woody. She was shocked that first morning to wake up and see this tall, handsome, man of muscles staring at her. He had stayed with her all through the night. He had held her hand and comforted her when she realized that she had confused him for her brother. They both laughed, now, at the name mix up. And when she realized that Alex wasn't coming. He had made her feel calm and cared for. And she didn't even know him then.

Woody smiled at her. It hadn't taken much for him to fall under the spell of Cassandra Phillips. She was smart, and funny and sweet, with a heart of gold. He had been watching her. He saw how she treated everyone, who came in to help her. Acting as if they were the best thing that had ever happened to her. It went way beyond the words of thanks that she said to them. Cassie had a way about her that made everyone feel special and important. Himself included. It was a joy just to be near her. Every minute he spent with her strengthened the bond that he had felt from the first time he saw her.

"Of course, I can do that" he said. He thought that this might be a good time to ask for some personal time off. He didn't want to leave Cassie alone in her apartment, if she was unable to take care of herself.

"Just tell me when to be here, and we'll get you home," he said with a smile.

She smiled back at him. That smile that sparkled in her eyes and lit up her whole face. Even with the bruising on her cheek and around her eyes Cassie was beautiful. Woody loved her big blue eyes. And he loved her silky blond hair. It had a swing to it, when she moved, that he thought was totally sexy. Her lips were soft and always in a smile or a laugh. Even when she was sleeping she seemed to smile. He looked forward to being with her every chance that he could. He would get lost in the moments he spent with her and the time always flew by too fast.

Woody hated to end his visit with her today, but he had to get back for his late shift. The 3 hour drive made things just a little bit more difficult, but it was worth it to him, just to be able to be near her. As he got ready to leave, he leaned over to kiss her forehead. As he always did. But this time Cassie surprised him. She lifted her head back and caught his lips with hers. His eyes opened in shock and she smiled at him.

"I'm going to miss you when you're gone," she said, and she kissed him again.

He kissed her back, this time he responded with a passion that he hadn't realized he had been holding in. And it left them both breathless.

Yes, he thought, I definitely need some time off to spend with Cassie.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxxox

Stephanie walked toward the conference room, waving hello to all of her Merry Men along the way.

"Hey, Woody" she said as she approached him. "Where have you been taking off to so much lately?" she asked.

Woody looked up, "Oh, hi Steph, just the person I needed to see" he said,

"I'm going to need a few days off starting tomorrow" he continued, handing her his request form. "I've got to help out a friend in DC."

Stephanie raised an eyebrow, (yes, she had discovered that she could do it) and said "Sure thing Woody, I'll take care of it right now." She slipped the form into her planner and waved her little finger wave to him as she headed to the weekly planning meeting.

Ella was already in the room, papers spread all over the conference table. She looked up when Stephanie walked in. Ella noticed that she still seemed a little bit pale.

"Hi Steph," Ella said. "How are you feeling today?" she inquired.

"Bobby gave me some antibiotics for the ear infection, he said the other flu symptoms will just have to run their course" Stephanie answered. "I've been having just a little bit of trouble with my equilibrium, so don't be surprised if I fall out of my chair," she teased with a wink.

"Well," said Ella, you have a few minutes before the guys will be here to get yourself situated properly," she teased back.

"So, Ella, have you noticed anything different about Woody lately?" Stephanie asked when she sat down at the table. "He has asked for a few days off, says he has a 'friend' who needs his help."

Ella looked up from her notes and smiled. Yes, she had indeed noticed. Woody looked like he had been walking around on a cloud for a week now. And she knew that he had been driving up to DC every chance he got.

"Could be our Woody is falling in love." Ella said. "He has that 'look' about him lately." Stephanie acted surprised. "You know, that '_look'_." Ella stressed the word. "When nothing else around you matters. Because you only have eyes for one person."

Stephanie sighed and glanced away. Yes, she remembered that look. And that feeling of being so consumed by love for another person that the rest of the world faded away. She looked down at her hands. She really missed being with that special person that made her heart race and her spine tingle.

It had been so long.

So long without a smile from him.

A touch.

A whispered word.

Her silence hung heavy in the room.

"Oh, Steph, I am so sorry." Ella started, but Stephanie just gave her a half smile and shook her head slightly. She didn't want to talk about it. It just hurt too much.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Woody looked at Cassie. She looked like she was going to burst if he didn't get her out of the hospital quick. She had been seated carefully in the wheel chair, but she was still fidgeting. She was zipping and unzipping the zippers on her back pack that she held on her lap. Woody leaned over her shoulder and kissed her neck.

"Hold on," he whispered. "You're almost out of here."

She could hear the smile in his voice and she sat back in the chair and relaxed just a little bit. She appreciated the effect that he had on her. She knew that she could get pretty worked up sometimes. Woody always made her feel calm. And she was coming to see just how much she needed him with her. She really hated it when he was gone, it was as if a huge part of her was missing.

Finally they made it out to his truck. Cassie wrapped her arm around Woody's broad shoulders as he lifted her out of the wheel chair and into the back seat of his King Cab. Once she was settled in, he gently closed the door. He folded the wheel chair and placed it in the bed of the truck. He smiled at her through the rearview mirror, when he slid behind the wheel.

"There, you made it," he teased her.

His smile was contagious and Cassie smiled back at his reflection in the mirror.

"You'll be the navigator" he told her, "now, let's get you home." With that, he pulled out of the parking lot.

"I'm out of there, at last" Cassie let out a breath of relief. The hospital stay was finally over. And she could spend some time with Woody. At first she wasn't sure about his idea. That he should stay with her to help take care of her. But the more she had thought about it, the more it appealed to her to have 100% of the attention of a good looking guy like him. Crazy to think that just over a week ago she didn't even know him. Now she felt like they had been friends forever. And she couldn't wait to see where it would go from here.

Finally they arrived at her building. There was a foyer at the bottom of the stairs leading up to Cassie's apartment. It was just big enough for the small armchair and a table. Not leaving much room for her wheelchair. Especially not with her leg extended out in front of her. Woody secured the outer door that they had just entered and told her that he wanted her to wait for him. He would go up and check her apartment before he took her up. She handed him her keys, but wasn't sure why he thought he needed to do that.

"That's not neces…" She started to object, when she saw him take out his gun. And the shock of seeing it shut her right up. "That's a gun," she gasped, "a real gun"

Woody nodded, and turned to the stairs. She watched in silence, he had a gun. Cassie didn't know that this was just standard operating procedure for Woody. He disappeared up the stairs and entered her apartment. And then she heard the first gunshot. She started to panic, and all she could think to do was to back her chair up over to the door and try to open it.

Woody had walked in on two Hispanic men who were systematically taking apart Cassie's apartment. Apparently they were there looking for something specific. The first shot was fired by one of these men. It missed Woody, but the shot that Woody fired back did not miss its mark. The second man tried to get his gun out to shoot him. But Woody shot his leg and disarmed him. He turned and put his gun away. Grabbing his phone Woody called RangeMan, informing them that he was bringing Cassie back for protection. This call set in motion a big investigation into Cassie's background.

As quickly as he could, Woody reached Cassie. He was grateful that she had managed to get the door opened, it saved them a few seconds, at least. He got her into the truck, and loaded her wheelchair. They pulled away from the curb just in time to see the rest of the Latin goon squad pull their car up behind them. As the truck turned the corner, Woody shot out their tires and burned rubber getting out of there as fast as he could.

Cassie was gripping the back of his seat and anything else that she could grab hold of. Trying to keep herself on her seat as they swerved out of the way of the bullets being fired at them. The back window was hit and bits of crackled glass sprayed down all over Cassie. Her eyes were wide, her throat felt dry, and she was scared. For one of the first times in her life, she couldn't say a word. She didn't speak again until Woody finally broke through her panic and got her attention.

"Cassie," he said. "Cassie!" a little bit louder this time. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"What just happened" she whispered. "Why…" she broke off the question. It was just too horrible to think that there would be any reason for anyone to try to kill them.

Woody was quiet for a few moments. "Cassie, you told me that you felt like someone was watching you lately, right?"

She nodded in response and then realized that he probably couldn't see that movement, so she spoke quietly "yes, but I don't know why." Tears came to her eyes now. "Why would anyone do this Woody?"

"I don't know," he said. "But I'm sure we will be finding out soon."

How? She wondered, as they rushed toward Trenton. As soon as he felt they were in a safe place, Woody pulled over and carefully lifted Cassie out of the truck. He brushed the bits of glass from her clothes and hair. And he held her tight. She could feel his heart pounding as hard as hers was. After a time, they were both able to calm down and relax. Woody set Cassie on the front seat. He carefully arranged her leg so that she could sit next to him and still have the support of the seat for her cast. Climbing in behind the wheel, he tucked her up into his side and wrapped his arm around her for the rest of the trip home.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

RangeMan was a hive of activity after Woody's call. The background check on one Cassandra Phillips brought up some interesting facts. Her father was once a Diplomat, and her family had lived abroad for many years. Her parents had died in a freak plane accident shortly after he had retired. Her brother had joined the Navy, and was training with the Seals. The records showed that he was now in an undisclosed location. But Ranger had ways around that block.

Cassandra had returned to the states several months ago from a Peace Corp mission that had been mysteriously terminated. There were contacts in her file that Ranger questioned. Not because of any official intel, just gut feelings about the man himself. He was beginning to wonder what Woody had involved himself in. He would find out.

By the time Woody pulled into the garage at RangeMan, the guys had found a significant amount of information about Cassandra. Several copies of the reports were placed on the conference table. Ranger, Tank, Bobby and Lester were in the room waiting for the arrival of Woody and his friend.

Brief introductions were made. Cassie found herself in awe to see so many large, good looking, buffed men in one place. If it hadn't been for the serious circumstances, she would have really enjoyed the scenery.

The guys were sorting through the papers. Skimming, reviewing before they got started. Woody picked up the set of papers in front of him and sifted through them. He placed the pages on the table, one by one, as he was finished with them. Cassie was watching them, waiting, when she spotted a photo on one of the pages.

She gasped, staring at the picture. "Thats _B," _she said. Why do you have a picture of _B?"_

Ranger chose the answer to this question to begin the discussion.

"Here is what we've got so far," he said.

"Police reports detailing events at 1234 Norfolk Circle, Gunnison, Colorado, state that a woman was found shot to death in her bedroom. One Beatrice Hansen. The report shows that there was a struggle, and the neighbors called 911 when they heard shots fired. The Police reports show that she had reported a break-in several days before the attack. This all happened about a month ago."

Cassie was stunned, she hadn' known about this, and her shock delayed the tears for a few moments. But she broke down and Woody knelt next to her chair and wrapped his arms around her. She buried her face in his shoulder as she grieved. She wanted to leave. The pain that this news brought was tormenting her. Emotions overtook her. She felt like she would suffocate. But she took a few deep breaths to gain control. Finally Cassie looked up and nodded to Ranger. She wanted him to continue his report.

"I'm sorry for your loss," he said. She bowed her head slightly and he continued.

"We have reason to believe that there may be a connection between these events and your visit to Ecuador."

Cassie was about to ask how when she saw the photo that Tank was holding. Woody noticed the confused look on her face. He watched her as she sorted through the papers on the table and grabbed the copy of the photo in question. He caught her eye and she saw the question in his.

"That is the guard at the military school in Cuenca," she said. Before she could ask why they had a picture of the guard, she noticed the looks on the faces of the men in the room. They were all staring at her.

"You have seen this man before?" Tank asked.

"Yeah, he was the only one who was nice to me that day," she said.

"Why do you know him?" Ranger asked.

Cassie blushed a bit. "It's really kind of embarrassing, but I almost got into some trouble in Cuenca." Suddenly Cassie felt an intense tension building in the room. She swallowed, she still felt so stupid about the whole thing.

"But he talked to us and helped me out," she said

There was a stunned silence in the room now. All of the guys had frozen in place.

Woody leaned forward and said, "tell us what happened."

Cassie looked down at her hands for a moment. She took a breath before having to admit that she had done something really stupid. She and _B_ had been walking past a military school on their way to the bus stop. There was a row of shrubs that caught her interest. Giant lifesize topiaries. Each one trimmed into the shape of a soldier saluting. Cassie found it fascinating. It was one of the most amazing things that she had ever seen done to a bush. She took a picture of it.

Cassie heard the gasps all around the table. They all recognized what an error in judgement that had been. She hesitated, and swallowed again before continuing with her story. "A couple of uniformed guards came rushing out through the gates and dragged us into the building, she said.

"I was literally pushed right into Capt. Perez when he walked out of his office. He seemed to take pity on us and led us back into his office where we could talk."

She glanced around at the looks on the guys faces. She wasn't sure what she was seeing. They all seemed upset. No, they were angry. Unsure as to why, she went on with the story.

"He told us that we were being accused of being spies," she said. "But he could tell by my reaction that it couldn't be farther from the truth. We explained that we were there with the Peace Corps. He left to talk to the other guards, and after just a few minutes we were politely escorted to the bus stop. And that was the end of it."

Again the men were stunned, looking at each other in disbelief. No one was saying anything for a really long time.

"What?" she finally asked.

"Cassie, at any time, during your talk with this man, did he ask you to deliver anything for him?" asked Tank.

Cassie looked at him with a frown and a bit of a pout. "Of course not." She was offended, and she looked as if she wanted to say I'm not _that _dumb. But she thought it was better to leave those words unsaid. Because she really did feel dumb about so much of what happened. But tears were still very close the surface. Cassie felt like she was just hanging on and she wanted to get this over as quickly as she could.

So Tank softened his statement. "Was there any time that your purse or coat was taken away from you?"

"Oh yes," she said. "I told Capt Perez that the guards had grabbed my backpack away from me when they dragged us in. There wasn't anything of any value in it. But I explained that it had been a gift from my father and it held sentimental value. He was quick to have our stuff returned to us. He was very kind about it." she explained.

As she felt the need to defend herself, she added. "I never saw him again, never heard anything about being a spy ever again."

"Do you have the back pack here with you?" Ranger asked.

Woody lifted the pack from the back of her wheel chair. He turned to her and said, "Cassie do you mind if we look it over?"

She looked puzzled as she nodded her assent.

"Your Capt Perez may have planted something that he wanted to send into the states when you came back" Lester said.

Lester started to closely examine the pack. Everyone watched, in silence, for what seemed like an excessively long time. And they all smiled when he indicated a small irregularity that he finally found on one of the straps. He pried at it and got it open, and removed two small black chips.

"These are high tech, very sophisticated. One's a data chip, don't know for sure about the other." He looked at them from every angle. "Lets have Silvio take a look at these," Lester said.

Cassie was horrified. "That's what they were looking for? What is it?" she asked.

Lester answered, holding up the data chip. "We'll know more in a little while, but my guess is that that little baby holds Cartel info detailing contacts and drop off dates and locations. There may even be damaging info about undercover agents."

This was too much for Cassie. Her heart ached for _B_. She felt foolish and responsible for unwittingly carrying such awful things home with her. Her stomach felt ill. The list just kept getting longer and longer.

Suddenly she sat up, back rigid, a stricken look on her face.

"They found _B_. They found me. Are they looking for anyone else connected to me? What about Alex? Can they find Alex too?"

She was getting dangerously close to hysterics now, her voice rising in panic.

"Do you know anything about Alex" she almost yelled.

"I don't even know where he is, can they get to Alex?"

She grabbed Woody by his arm, but she looked up to Ranger. Woody placed his hand on top of hers and looked at Ranger too, hoping for an answer. Ranger walked over to Cassie and crouched down to look her in the eyes. He braced his arms on the arms rests of her chair. Encircling her.

"Cassie, we found your brother, he will be here soon," Ranger told her. "He is a Seal, and we have connections. We were able to remove him from the training mission he was on." He nodded slightly, reassuring her. "We'll bring him here, it's the best way to keep him safe from your Capt Perez."

The look in Rangers eyes was kind and sympathetic. Cassie knew that she could trust this man. And just by looking at him, she knew that Alex would be safe. "Thank you," she whispered, as her voice nearly failed her from the emotion that was choking her.

"Thank you," she said again. He nodded and she felt completely reassured. Everything would be okay.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Cassie had had a very trying few days. She was resting in Woody's apartment on the 4th floor. Situated on the couch, she had her leg propped up along the length of the couch. She seemed to be having a hard time getting comfortable. Or maybe she was just fidgety because of the craziness that was her life right now.

Woody was so attentive to her needs. She knew it would have been so great to have all him alone with her in her apartment. But for reasons still unknown to her, someone had wrecked that scenario for her. So she was now staying with him in his apartment at RangeMan.

They enjoyed the time that they spent together. They would watch movies and play video games. He would take her up to the roof so she could get some fresh air and feel the sun on her face. Sometimes they would sit together and just talk. That was her favorite time. He would sit behind her and wrap his arms around her as they talked. About anything, about everything, it didn't matter.

He was so good to her. But since he was back at RangeMan, his days off were kindof postponed. They needed his help. So he would have to leave her alone. But before he would leave, he'd do everything he could think of to make her happy while he was gone.

He brought in extra pillows and tried to prop them behind her back. He brought in some bottles of water and a bowl of big red grapes, that he found out were her favorite snack (thank you Ella!). He made sure that the TV remote was within reach. And that she had her phone with her, fully charged.

Woody told her, that if she needed anything while he was gone, she could call Ella. What he didn't know is that Ella seemed to know when he left. And every day she would show up and spend time with Cassie. They were becoming good friends already. Ella won her over on the first day she was here, when she brought some yoga pants and cute t-shirts to replace the sweats she had been wearing. Cassie had been forced to buy the horrible pink sweats at the hospital gift shop because she never had a chance to get clothes from her apartment. And she needed something clean to wear home.

Ella seemed to know everything about everything and they had great discussions. And Ella was a lifesaver. She brought along a thin metal rod with a rounded tip, she would help Cassie slide it under the cast to gently scratch the itches that were driving her crazy. It was official, Ella was perfect and Cassie loved Ella!

And when Ella's visits were over, Cassie had her big leather back pack that sat on the floor next to her. In it were all of her toys, her IPod with headphones. Her 3DS and a few games. Her camera was there as well as a novel, a crossword puzzle book, and small spiral notebooks. Which she kept for jotting down random ideas, thoughts or to do lists.

She had things to do. Well, technically, they were just things to keep her occupied. But she still ended up feeling restless.

Woody was getting ready to go back on shift. He hated to leave her, but he really did have some work to do. Cassie watched him as he did some last minute fussing. A smile crept onto her face. She realized several days ago that she was beginning to care for him. A lot. A lot more than just friends. And though they had only been thrown together a short time ago, she could not imagine her life without him.

Woody stood to leave, but Cassie grabbed his hand and pulled him to sit down next to her. Wordlessly she wrapped her arms around him and leaned into his firm, strong chest. She surprised him with this sudden gesture. But he gladly wrapped his arms around her and held her tight.

"Thank you", she said softly.

She pulled back enough to look into his eyes.

Without a word he kissed her. Slow, gentle, sweet at first, but she responded. Urgent and passionate. When they finally came up for air, he leaned his forehead against hers and whispered "Thank _you_."

Leaving now was the hardest thing he ever had to do.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Ranger was busy speaking with his contacts. He was sharing the intel that they had gathered, thanks to Woody's recent involvement with Cassie. Finally he took a short break for a bottle of water. He was heading down the hall to the break room when he saw Ella walk out of the door. Her eyes lit up when she saw him.

"There you are," she said with a smile. "I've been looking for you."

"Yeah?' he answered.

"Yeah, I was starting to wonder if I'd ever see you again," she teased as she slipped her arms around his waist and leaned into him. He wrapped his arms around her and buried his head in her silky hair. They were content to stay there like that, absorbing comfort and strength from one another.

Stephanie came out of the break room a few minutes later. She looked up and suddenly stopped. Standing in the doorway, she attempted to grab the door for support, but she lost her grip. Her eyes rolled back and she collapsed to the floor.

Ella spun her head around at the sound of the fall, and went rushing over to her.

"Steph…" Ella started to say when she was pushed out of the way. She felt some broad, strong shoulders practically plow into her. She fell back before she could see who it was. She struggled to get up and then turned to stare at the figure in black. He was cradling Stephanie gently in his arms, crying out to her, his voice full of concern and love.

"Stephanie!" "Stephanie!"

"Can you hear me?... Steph!"

"Open your eyes for me, Steph"

"Please, Stephanie its going to be alright."

Ella stepped back and stared at the scene before her. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Stephanie was wrapped in his arms and finally started to come around. Slowly her eyes opened and she smiled. A slow, satisfied smile.

"I'm sorry Steph, I'm so sorry," he started saying, as he buried his face in her neck.

"Shhhh, its okay," Stephanie whispered. Closing her arms around him.

"Everything is going to be okay now." She said

He looked into her eyes and smiled, slowly, tentatively. As if he wasn't sure how she would feel about him, after all this time.

"You've come back to me!" Stephanie said softly.

All of the waiting and the hoping and dreaming was finally over. The fears, that she would never again be able to hold him in her arms, to kiss him, to be with him, all evaporated. She hugged him tighter. Nothing could ever compare to the joy that she felt at this moment. She had wanted to feel him in her arms so many times, and here he was. She couldn't ask for more.

"Oh Alex, you're back!" she said.

Ranger pulled Ella back into his arms and they observed the touching scene.

"When did Alex get here?" she whispered.

"He's Cassie's brother," he said quietly.

Understanding dawned on her. "He is the Seal we've been waiting for." It wasn't a question. She started putting the pieces of the puzzle together, and she looked up at Ranger. He nodded, he knew that she had figured it out. Cassie's brother the Navy Seal, was the same as Stephanie's friend the Seal who had been gone for so long.

"Wow, small world," she said.

Ranger gave Ella's shoulder a slight squeeze, they turned around and walked down the hall. Ranger was sure that Alex would appreciate a few moments alone with Stephanie before he needed to be debriefed.

They had been speaking in hushed tones, but it didn't seem to matter one way or another. The couple didn't appear to be paying attention to anything around them.

Stephanie stared at Alex. She held his face in her hands as if she still didn't believe that he was real. As if she was afraid that he would disappear at any moment.

"I've missed you," she said softly.

Alex nodded his head and kissed her lightly on her lips. He helped her stand up and wrapped his arms around her again.

"I'm not sure why they've brought me here," he said. "But I will never question a miracle."

She smiled at him. "Come on there is someone you need to see."

Stephanie led Alex to the elevators and took him down to the 4th floor. She knocked on Woody's door. 

"Come on in, it's open." They heard the voice in the apartment say.

Stephanie pushed open the door and grabbed Alex by his hand and pulled him into the room.

"Alex!"

"Cassie!"

The names were spoken at the same time. Alex rushed over and dropped to his knees beside the couch. He grabbed his sister in a tight hug.

"Another miracle!" he said almost to himself. After several long moments clinging to each other, Alex finally looked at Cassie and said "how…?"

Cassie cut off the rest of his question, knowing that there was so much that he would want to know. "You'll get all of the answers soon," she said. She placed her hands on his shoulders, holding him where she could really look at him.

"I'm just so glad to finally see you again!" she said.

Cassie saw the look in his eyes. And she remembered how bad she must look to him. The bruising on her face had spread to her eyes. And the cut on her head didn't add anything to her charms. Then there was the huge cast on her leg.

"I'm okay really," she told him. Interpreting his concerned look.

"That's good to hear, cause you look pretty bad," he teased. He hugged her again.

"It's really good to see you Cass," he said.

Stephanie and Alex sat on the chairs across from the couch. They were holding hands, keeping connected. Neither wanted to let the other go. The three of them talked, getting caught up with what had been going on in each others lives. Cassie looked at Alex and then she looked at Stephanie.

"You better tell me your story" she said. She smiled at them, "right now."

Alex smiled at Stephanie.

"We met nearly a year ago," he started. "I had some time off. You were in Ecuador so my buddy Jim suggested that I come home to Trenton with him. We were going to work at his family's business and earn a few extra bucks."

"I think it was his first day on the job when I ran into him," Stephanie said.

"And she means literally," Alex added.

They continued to tell the story. Both Alex and Stephanie seemed more than glad to remember their first days together.

Jim's family owns the clothing supply company that RangeMan gets their 'uniforms' from. Ella had found them when she first came on board with RangeMan. She felt that they had the quality of Cargo pants, t-shirts, button down collar shirts, windbreakers, sweatshirts, etc that she was looking for. And more importantly, they provided the size range that was needed for the guys at RangeMan.

Ranger had hired several new guys and Stephanie was picking up their new order. She picked up the big box sliding it off of the counter. She was balancing it on her hip to help distribute the weight. It may have not been heavy exactly, but it was large and awkward. Alex saw her struggling with it. He rushed up to help her with the box, but she couldn't see him. She just heard a voice offer to help her and she turned toward it. And she slammed right into Alex, the corner of the box catching him in his rib.

"The box fell out of my arms, and spilled out all over the floor." She said. "And I stood face to face with Alex," Stephanie smiled at him again. "And there was just something in his smile that made me want to know more about him." she said.

Stephanie smiled inwardly, yes there was something in the smile. But there was also the handsome face. She would never get enough of the dimple that showed itself to the right side of his gorgeous mouth, only when he smiles in a certain way. A smile, she had noticed quickly, that he usually smiled only for her. And she admitted to noticing his broad shoulders and tight buns too. Of course there was no need to tell his sister these things.

"We started hanging out with each other," Alex continued the story. "It was a great. We did everything together. Stephanie showed me Point Pleasant that first weekend and we went there often."

"I couldn't keep him away from the scallops and crab cakes at the Co-op," Stephanie teased.

"Don't forget the shrimp," Alex countered with a wink. He was looking over at Stephanie again, sharing a smile over their memories.

"We had a lot of fun for a few months, and then Alex went into the special training mission and pretty much disappeared for the next 7 months." Stephanie said, looking at him again.

Cassie couldn't miss the looks that Alex and Stephanie gave each other. They had really missed each other. She watched them. They were perfect for each other. She was glad that she had had the chance to get to know Stephanie during the past few days. She really liked her and was ready to approve of the girl her brother had chosen to fall in love with. Not that he would need to ask for her approval, she thought. But he might like to know that she thought he had chosen well.

Cassie was glad to see him so happy. Stephanie was really good for him. In much the same way that Woody was good for her. She decided right then, right there, that she was going to tell Woody how she felt. Just as soon as they could be alone together.

"Uh, hello," Alex said, pulling her back from her thoughts.

"Sorry about that," Cassie said with a smile.

They kept talking. They cried, and they laughed together until Woody came back.

He walked into the room, surprised to find Stephanie and Alex there. "It's time." he said. Woody walked over to the couch, he kissed Cassie on the cheek. And then he looked up at Alex. "We're glad you're here, Alex" he said, as he extended his hand.

"Alex, I'd like you to meet Alex, also known as Woody," Cassie said.

Stephanie smiled, she had never heard Woody called Alex before. She wasn't even aware that was his name.

"It's good to meet you man," Woody said shaking hands. "Now lets go and figure a few things out."

Cassie nodded. She didn't want to cut off her time with Alex, but she knew that there were a lot of questions that he had. She still had some of her own. Woody brought her wheel chair around to the couch and carefully helped Cassie get situated. Together the group made their way up to the conference room.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Ranger walked into the conference room. The room was already filled with everyone who needed to be part of this discussion. He nodded to Alex. Behind him, on the flat screen, images appeared. A photo of Cassie's 'Capt Perez' came on the screen. He was dressed in a full military uniform now and looked very menacing.

"This is _General_ Francisco Perez," Ranger stated. "He controls the Columbian Drug Cartel. Lately he has been trying to recruit the government leaders of the neighboring country. Ecuador."

Cassie gasped. Now she realized why the guys had been so upset the other day. She had been speaking so casually about this man. The man that they had known to be a monster.

Another picture flashed up on the screen.

"Director William Martin has been using his position with the Peace Corps to make a fortune working with the drug cartels in Central and South America." Ranger spoke with a controlled tone. He hated what this man had been doing. And he hated what it was going to do to Cassie to hear how he had used her.

He looked at her. He was right, this was going to be upsetting to her. She already had a stricken look on her face as she stared at the screen.

"Martin has been using Peace Corp kids, for years, as unwitting couriers. Sending both drugs and information back and forth between the states and the cartels." He said. His network has been hidden by the front of the benevolent Peace Corp, and even the agencies that know of his connections have had difficulty proving his involvement.

"We have been able to retrieve the information from the chips that we found in Cassie's back pack. It contained exactly what Lester had assumed it would. There was contact information for drug couriers, shipment dates and locations. And, worse of all, identities of several undercover DEA agents currently working in Columbia,"

"Silvio was able to decode the information in the second chip. The entire network was detailed, and is now exposed." Ranger tried to smile at Cassie, letting her know that she had been instrumental in helping discover this information. But he knew that knowledge would not be enough to help her, At least not today.

Ranger watched Cassie as he continued to speak, she was looking down at her hands. "Martin and Perez were in the middle of "persuading" the officials in Ecuador to join in their organization. One of the DEA agents, in Columbia, discovered what was going on. Some communications were intercepted and this agent was killed. Unfortunately, the identity of the other agents became known as well. Agent Beatrice Hansen had been undercover in Ecuador. She was able to get out of the country and took Cassie with her."

Ranger saw Cassie's head snap back. He looked into her eyes, and spoke directly to her.

"She didn't know that there had been anything hidden in your pack," he said.

"She just knew that she had to get you both out of the country and hide, you were too close to the Columbia problem."

He couldn't read the look in her eyes now, but Ranger knew that this information wasn't easy to hear. He turned to the rest of the group. "Agent Hansen covered their tracks very well. Martin couldn't find them, and he was frantic to have the missing chips that were supposed to be delivered. As he should have been, the information that had been lost had, indeed has, the potential to shut him down for good."

"It wasn't until he received a phone call from Cassie that he knew where she was. They traced her back to Gunnison and found Agent Hansen. Then he set it up for Cassie to work in the DC office, to bring her close so that he could look for the chips." Ranger paused. Looking at Cassie again, he wished he could take away the pain he saw in her eyes.

Cassie swallowed hard. Her heart was pounding. Her head felt like it was in a vice grip, pressure tightening relentlessly. Black dots formed and darkness was closing in around her vision. This was her fault she thought. _ B_ is dead and it was her fault. She had tried to protect her. She had always tried to protect her, from the day they met. And Cassie had killed her. And she had put her brother in danger. If Ranger hadn't found him, he could be dead too. The thoughts pounded in her head

Silent sobs wracked her body. She couldn't breathe. Woody wrapped his arms around her. She was shaking, tears streaming from her eyes and soaking into his shirt. At last, Woody felt her go limp, mercifully she had fainted. He gently lifted her out of the chair and sat on the floor with her so that he could hold her tight in his arms.

Ranger was so sorry that she had to hear this. He knew how she was taking it. He had been in this position too many times to think about. She was taking the responsibility, the blame for everything, internally. He knew that nothing that had happened was her fault. But he also knew that that singular fact didn't make any difference to her right now. All she would be thinking now is that she had endangered her friend and her brother. This was a heavy burden and he felt like shit for having to be the one who laid out this information to her.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Thanks to Ranger and his connections, much of Martin's organization was uncovered. Ranger was careful to include Cassie in as much of the investigation as he could. He knew that it would be a big step toward her being able to forgive herself, for what she may always feel was her fault. He found her to have good intuition, and a remarkable memory. She was able to fill in the details of the network, just from what she had seen as a Peace Corp member and then as an employee. He spent as much time as he could with her. Well, as much time as Woody would permit.

Woody was very protective of her and of his time with her. But even Woody realized that Ranger had practically been acting as a counselor to Cassie. He helped her work out her feelings, because Ranger knew exactly how she felt. There was no one more qualified to help her. And Woody would be the first to admit that it made him feel better too. He hated to see Cassie hurting in any way.

Cassie finally had a chance to have her 'talk' with Woody. Between the investigation, and Woody's crazy work schedule, she hadn't found the right time. But a window of opportunity was opening up this weekend, and she grabbed onto it with both hands. She asked Ella to help her set up a nice dinner in Woody's apartment. They worked around his schedule, and everything was ready for him when he returned that evening.

Woody was surprised when he came in and saw her with her hair all done up, and dressed in a silky blue dress that brought out the incredible blue of her eyes. She took his breath away and he loved that she had gone to so much trouble. For him. For them.

Cassie had told him, when he left this morning, that she had something that she wanted to talk about. And now he couldn't wait to hear what she wanted to say. He was pretty sure that it was going to be close to what he had been dying, for weeks, to say to her too.

He knelt down by the couch and leaned in to give her a kiss. "I love you," he whispered.

She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back. Then pulling back only enough to look into his eyes, she smiled. "I love you," she said softly. Then she hugged him again, like she would never let go. By the time they got to dinner, it was cold.

At last, the cast was coming off. Cassie was nervous about it. No, scared out of her mind was more like it. She hadn't had any use of her leg for so long. She worried that it would look lopsided compared to her left leg, and that she would always have trouble walking. Woody didn't discount her fears. Instead he took her down to the gym and showed her the exercises that she could do to strengthen her leg once the cast was off.

Reassuring her that everything would be okay.

Woody was by her side at the doctors office. He smiled encouragement to her as the doctor explained the recovery exercises that he recommended. She returned his smile, her heart full of love for this wonderful man. And she knew he would be by her side forever.

Stephanie met them when they returned from the doctor. She and Ella had a little celebration set up in her apartment. Woody joined them, for just a little while, until he had to get back for his shift. As soon as he was gone, they jumped at the chance to hear all about the dinner the other night. Cassie blushed wildly. She had not expected this ambush, but she gladly told them that the night was everything she had hoped for and much, much more. The blushing came back in spades when she accidentally said that her cast had been a huge problem before, but now that it was off…

Ella and Stephanie stared at her wide eyed, for just a moment. They couldn't believe that Cassie just blurted it out like that. Then they were all smiles. They could both see that Cassie was as good for Woody, as Woody was for her. And if there was ever something that these two women could agree on, it was that they were all for anything that made one of their Merry Men happy.

In honor of the occasions they were celebrating today, Ella brought out a stack of small boxes, handing one to Stephanie and one to Cassie. She kept one for herself. Ella cleared her throat, and assumed an official posture.

"Welcome to the 2nd annual RangeWoman celebration," she was trying not to laugh at the look on Stephanie's face. They both remembered that they had not been in the same place for the 1st celebration. Cassie was just looking confused. Indicating herself and Stephanie, Ella explained to her that they were still the only two women working at RangMan.

"But I am happy to announce that we may have one more woman ready to join us," Ella turned to Cassie and asked her if she would like to work with her as an assistant. Cassie's face lit up and she nodded furiously. After such an enthusiastic response, Ella held up her box.

"I was hoping you would say that," she smiled. "Now open your boxes," she said.

The boxes contained watches. They were nicely designed woman style watches with an added benefit.

"These are the first pretty watches that I have found that have tracking devices in them," said Ella. "As you know, all of the guys wear the big black watches we found for them. I was just really excited to find these nice ones for us."

Stephanie held up her box, "To Rangewomen," she said. Ella and Cassie both tapped their own boxes to hers and said in unison, "Rangewomen!

Late that evening, Woody dragged himself back to the apartment. He had been working crazy hours. RangeMan was a little short handed due to an unexpected flu strain that was getting passed around. And he had been filling in as much as he could. Today Woody had worked an early shift in addition to his scheduled afternoon shift. Still finding time to fit in Cassie's doctor appointment. But now he was beat.

The apartment was dark when he opened the door. He figured that Cassie was already asleep. So he quietly made his way to the bedroom. Taking his clothes off in the dark, so he wouldn't disturb her. As he slipped into the bed, he found out that she had indeed gone to bed, but she was definitely not asleep. Without a word, she wrapped herself around him. Kissing him with a fervor that drove any thoughts of how exhausted he was completely out of his head. I could get used to this, he thought when they finally curled up into each other and fell asleep.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

One of the apartments across the street from the RangeMan building had become available, and Woody had requested it. He felt that it would be more comfortable for them to live away from the guys on the 4th floor now. Besides, Alex was staying with Stephanie in the same building, and Cassie wanted to be close.

Ranger had arranged for Alex to be released from his commitment with the Seals. Making the argument that Perez was still at large and may have a personal vendetta against both Cassie and Alex. Alex readily accepted an offer to be employed with RangeMan.

Cassie couldn't be happier with the way things were working out. Alex was back in her life and now Woody and Stephanie were part of their family. Ranger and Ella feel like family too. And now that Cassie is mobile again, and Ella has invited her to work with her, she couldn't think of anything more she wanted.

A niggling at the back of her brain tried to warn her that too many things were going right. It tried to prepare her for impending disaster, but she just couldn't hear it. She was too happy to let bad little thoughts ruin things for her.

Now that they were moving into a new place, Cassie wanted to go get her things from the Apartment in DC. She had contacted the owner of the building after the attack. She had told them that there were probably some bullet holes in the walls, and that she would not be coming back. They assured her that her things would be packed up and put into storage. And that was exactly where they were headed to this morning.

Just as soon as they had loaded the few boxes into Woody's truck, the trouble began. The men who grabbed Cassie were prepared for Woody and his gun. The last thing that Cassie saw, before being knocked out herself, was the tranquilizer dart sticking out of Woody's shoulder, as he slumped down onto the ground.

She screamed and screamed, which is why they felt the need to hit her hard on the head to quiet her. She was thrown into their van and taken away. The noise that she had made, though, was enough to attract some attention. Several people came out of the StorageRus office and they found Woody next to his truck. One of the guys was smart enough to pull the dart out immediately. The effects of the drug wore off, and Woody contacted RangeMan for help.

The recognizable scents of an office greeted Cassie when she woke up. Paper, toner, rubber bands, wood pencils, the smells were over powering. She opened her eyes to find herself in the middle of a storage room. It looked familiar, she was in the Peace Corp office building. She knew who was responsible for her abduction.

Just as the thought came to her mind, she heard the noise in the hall. Someone was unlocking the door. In walked Bill Martin. He was red in the face, glaring at her.

This was the man that she had once held in high esteem for his role in spreading kindness all around the world. She had admired the dedication he portrayed to the mission of the Peace Corps. That hurt as much as anything else. She had liked the man, once. Now that she knew what he did, what he was, she felt betrayed. She glared back at him with some hatred of her own.

Bill Martin was an arrogant SOB and never thought that anyone would ever find out about his secret 'business' dealings. He considered himself to be an intelligent and cautious man. And he was furious to find that he had been exposed all because of a stupid little do-gooder.

Cassie Phillips was supposed to have been an easy target. She had trusted him. He knew it. He orchestrated it the first day they met at the orientation. He had used that trust for his own purposes. He had used so many people before, she was just one more. But now he knew the truth. He had somehow become careless, and had misjudged this innocent looking girl. Now he knew that Cassie Phillips had brought down his entire empire.

And he was going to punish her for it. He had access to any drug he wanted. And he had specifically chosen the one he knew could do the most damage to Cassie. Martin stood leaning up against the door. He watched with an evil fascination as the two men he brought with him corned Cassie. She was fighting back, kicking and screaming. She was able to kick one of the men square in the face with her good leg. But the other guy grabbed her other leg and pulled her back.

Once they both had her until control, Martin strolled up to her. He brought out a syringe already filled with the poison that he had selected. His eyes had a wicked gleam in them. He was enjoying this.

"You… you." His voice was low and threatening. "You have ruined everything," he growled. "I need you to pay for that, and you can begin right now."

Cassie screamed again, a hand came over her mouth to quiet her. She bit down hard, and the injured man let go of his grip on her. Cassie twisted out of the grasp of the other man and scrambled behind a rack of shelves. Martin followed her and she skirted down around the shelves until she came out at the end next to the door. He could see that she was headed for the open door.

"Get her," Martin yelled. "Don't let her get out"

The men struggled to their feet and ran toward her. Just as she reached the door, she was tackled by both men. They all went down in a tangled pile. Cassie was kicking and screaming again. She was losing strength by the second. Not even the adrenaline pulsing through her body was going to be able to keep her going much longer. She felt the tears start. Even if she could fight longer, it was three against one. And she knew she would not be waking up ever again if Martin drugged her.

Tank fielded the call that came in from Woody. Cassie was in trouble in DC. That was three hours from Trenton. None of the RangeMen would be able to get there to help in time. But Cassie was wearing the new watch that Ella had given to her. With the small tracker hidden inside, Tank was able to give the coordinates to Woody.

Woody headed to the Peace Corp offices. And Tank picked up his phone and called in a favor. Within minutes, Woody was met in the hallway by the head of security for the building. The man had received a call from the Feds. They were on their way, and he had strict instructions to detain Bill Martin until they arrived.

Just then they heard the muffled thumps, and a woman scream. They followed the sounds.

"Cassie!" Woody yelled as he quickened his pace. He had left the security guy behind. His only thought was getting to Cassie.

"Nooooo!" the scream was cut off. And Woody was nearly panicking now. He raced to the sound and saw a pileup of people in the doorway of the storage room. Bill Martin was coming at Cassie with a needle raised above his head as if he needed all the momentum he could get to plunge it into her.

Suddenly Martin dropped to the floor. His eyes came even to Cassie's and she could still see the hatred in them. Finally it registered that she had heard a gunshot. Woody, she thought, Woody is here. She pushed at the men and tried to get up.

Martin had been shot, but he was not dead. And in his madness he attempted one more time to attack Cassie with the drugs. His arm swung wide and he almost got her. He did manage to scrape her ankle with the tip of the needle, drawing blood. She scrambled away from him and ran down the hall to Woody.

Two things kept Woody from killing Martin right then, right there. The way he felt he could have torn the man apart with his bare hands. But Cassie came running into his arms. And within minutes the arrival of the Feds kept him from ending Martin's life. Everyone would agree that Martin did deserve to die, but justice was better served to make him suffer for a long, long time. And that is what they would be sure to do.

The charges against Martin were extensive. His organization had been completely exposed. Raids from DC to Miami were conducted by the local DEAs in each area. Thanks to the intel from the micro chips, they found the key players in Martins business, and they were all taken down.

General Perez, however, was a slippery man. He was impossible to find, a master at disappearing. The DEA continued their fight against the cartels. Having the information from the chips was instrumental in shutting down a large part of the network. But the Feds sure would like to get their hands on Perez himself. The search would continue until they did.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Now that she had her mobility back, and had recovered from the abduction ordeal, Cassie was ready to make her last trip to Gunnison. She wanted to pay her respects to _B_. She owed her so much and she really mourned the loss, not only of her friend, but also the loss of her friendship. She would always feel guilty for leaving. She should never have run away. She would always have to live with that pain. With the guilt.

Woody could see that look in Cassie's eyes. He knew that she was thinking about _B _again. He pulled her into his arms. From everything that he knew about _B_, he knew that Cassie's friend would want to be remembered with the happy memories. So when Cassie started looking sad like this, he would ask her to tell him about her times in Ecuador. Those were the happiest moments they had had in their friendship.

"Se perdio los dientes," he said and it brought a smile to her lips.

(it means 'he lost his teeth – slang in Ecuador for 'he vomited')

"!Que lastima! She answered. "!Que cosa!

(what a shame - unbelievable)

She could laugh again now, about how funny that day had been. They were on a small bus, on their way up to Cuenca. The city was so high up in the mountains that they actually passed through the clouds that circled around the mountain peaks. And yet they still kept climbing. Cassie will never forget looking back down to see the valley below and seeing the thick blanket of clouds instead. It was like they had passed through a portal into another dimension. Suddenly there was some noise in the back of the bus and someone yelled

"Se perdio los dientes"

_B_ asked what they had said, and Cassie translated, literally. He lost his teeth. She didn't know that it had another definition entirely. _B_ had turned around to see if they had found the guys teeth yet when she saw him get sick again all over the floor. And the smell finally reached the rest of the bus. The look on her face was priceless. And Cassie started laughing.

"I thought you knew how to speak Spanish," _B_ said, and started laughing too.

It was funny, and they both laughed until they had tears in their eyes.

"Maybe I just don't speak Ecuatoriano yet," Cassie defended herself, with a pout, and they laughed even harder.

Woody smiled. He looked at her beautiful face, and he knew that Cassie was remembering again how much fun they had had.

As Cassie looked at Woody her heart was full to bursting. He was so good for her, in so many ways. His sensitivity to her loss now, showed her again, how much there was about him to love.

They were standing in the military section of the cemetery outside of Gunnison. While it was heating up in Trenton with the humidity levels going off the charts. Up here in the mountains the air was temperate and dry. A very slight breeze stirred the small flags placed next the grave markers.

It was a pleasant day, with clear blue skies and just a few clouds floating high in the sky.

Cassie's heart hurt, she was filled with sorrow, and pain, and regret. And yet, she also felt gratitude, and friendship, and love.

They walked along the rows of perfectly spaced graves. Stopping when they came to the one they were looking for. Cassie looked at the bronze marker with _B's _name. Gently she placed a single yellow rose across it. Woody was quietly telling her about the military ceremonies that he had seen, and letting her know that her friend had been honored for her service to her friends and country.

Cassie stood, taking his hand. "Thank you," she whispered. He pulled her into his arms and held her until the tears finally stopped.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

It was decided, they would have a game night this Friday. Alex and Stephanie got together with Woody and Cassie as often as their schedules would allow. They met up in the break room to make the plans and Stephanie was volunteering to have the party at her place. And she would make dinner.

Woody looked at Alex, and gave him an almost imperceptible shake of his head. They all knew that Stephanie still could not cook. And none of them felt brave enough to try any more of her culinary attempts.

Cassie intercepted the looks and ran interference so that they didn't accidently hurt Stephanie's feelings.

"Oh," she said with a 'surprised' look on her face. "I thought that you had all promised me food from Pino's this week." Gently reminding everyone of the conversation they really did have last week.

"Yeah, you're right," Stephanie said. And just like that it was settled. Steph turned to Cassie and said "You have to try the meatball sub, you'll love it"

The conversation immediately turned to a discussion about the games they wanted to play. Woody wrapped his arms around Cassie and gave her a hug. She turned her head and kissed him.

"Go get a room," Lester said, as he walked in and saw the two couples.

Woody whispered something to Cassie and they walked quickly out of the room. Alex and Stephanie watched them go. Then they looked at each other and Alex grabbed her hand and they ran out of the room too.

Lester watched them leave. Nice to have someone listen to me once in a while he thought, smiling.

During a rousing game of Pictionary, the clue included a picture of a car. Woody did an admirable job of drawing a sports car. Alex started laughing when he saw what Woody was drawing. And he started teasing Cassie about the way she took care of his car for him while he was gone. Of course the car in question was the little Honda that was totaled in the crash.

"It was my first car," he teased her. "You promised to be nice to it," he added with a wink. Cassie threw one of the pillows from the couch at him in response.

"About that accident Cassie," Stephanie interjected. "I always wondered if that was a first attempt on your life."

"I wondered the same thing," Woody said. "So we checked out the driver of that car, did a whole back ground check and everything."

"What did you find out," Stephanie asked. Then she said "Seems unusual for the cartels to use a 'suicide bomber' type technique. What happened to the guy who caused the accident?"

Woody opened his mouth to answer this question too. He was the one who had done the investigating. And Cassie was more than happy to let him field all of these questions. So much had happened immediately after the accident, she hadn't even thought about the other drivers. And when she finally remembered to worry about the other people that had been involved in the accident, she actually felt guilty that she hadn't thought about them much, much sooner.

"Turns out the guy was high," Woody told Stephanie. "Yeah, he was flying higher than a kite. Thought he was actually in a plane, flying for real. He didn't stop for the cars at the light because he thought that he was flying above them all."

"So, let me get this straight," Stephanie said. "The accident wasn't connected to Martin or Perez or anything?"

Woody shook his head to answer the question.

"Cassie just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time?" she asked.

Woody nodded.

"And she just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time in Ecuador when she ran into Perez?" Stephanie continued her questions.

Another nod from Woody.

"And, she just happened to be in Ecuador with a DEA agent, at the precise moment that an incident with DEA agents in Columbia happened. And because of their proximity they were sent home. No other reason."

Again Woody nodded his head.

"Another wrong place at the wrong time," she said. Now Stephanie just shook her head.

"And all this led up to her being kidnapped and nearly killed."

This time they all nodded their heads.

Stephanie performed the mother of all eye rolls. "And you all thought that my life got crazy!" she said.

Cassie was sitting by listening to this exchange, recognizing for the first time, just how many things had to line up in her life just right. Making it so that she was in the right spot to meet Woody.

She reached out and took his hand, and he instinctively pulled her close and wrapped her in his arms. She felt so right with him.

She knew that she wouldn't want it any other way. She had had to go through all of that just to get to Woody. And she would do it all over again, in a heartbeat. It was so worth it. He was so worth it.

"The way I look at it," Cassie said to Stephanie. "Is that I ended up in the _right_ place at the _right_ time to meet Woody." She smiled at him, "And I wouldn't change a thing!"


End file.
